An Obsession with All Things Handmade and Home-Cooked

Warming from the Inside Out

Everything that possibly could go wrong, did; In the space of about five minutes, the light bulb right above my head blew out in spectacular fashion, the garage door failed to open and was consequently holding the car hostage, and worst of all, the boiler in the basement decided to take a little siesta. Shivering through three layers of clothing, it suddenly hit me that it really shouldn’t be this cold inside… But if the heat isn’t working, it turns out that this temperature is perfectly appropriate. With a fresh layer of snow on the ground and a full day at home planned, it just figures, doesn’t it?

Bumbling about the kitchen in my full winter coat, there was one thing and one thing only on my mind: To keep warm! Mechanically going through the motions of starting up a pot of onions and other aromatics, I had no clue what I really wanted for lunch on such a spirit-dampening day, but it was bound to be warm, and that was good enough for me. Spices followed veggies, adding some heat to the flavor as well, and when the lentils finally joined the mix, I knew that this haphazard meal would really be just the thing I needed.

Somewhere between a soup and a stew, this hearty mix really helped put some color back into my frozen checks. A fairly simple, no-fuss affair, it’s nothing to call the papers about and write a rave review, but it simply hit the spot on that day when little else good was happening. Happily, it makes enough for a small army, so you can plan to save a good amount and reheat it for days to come, should time or energy be of the essence.

I did discover one good thing about having no heat, however- It makes it much easier to photograph the steam from hot foods!

In a large stockpot over medium heat, get the oil nice and hot, and saute the onions, leeks, celery, carrots, and garlic, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes, until the onions are translucent and all the veggies are tender. Add in the herbs and spices, and cook for another 10 minutes to let the flavors begin to mingle.

At this stage, you can go ahead and introduce your dry lentils and rice, as well as the tomato sauce, vinegar, and 6 cups of the vegetable stock. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the stew to simmer, adding in more stock if it threatens to dry out and burn, for about 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. Give it a taste, add in the salt and pepper, taste again, and adjust the seasonings if desired.

Toss in the frozen veggies, kill the heat, and just stir them through the mixture to thaw. Allow 5 minutes for this last round of veg to come up to temperature. Add in the remaining amount of stock if it’s too thick for your tastes, and even more if you’d prefer something soupier. Serve piping hot!

WOW! That first photo is absolutely breathtaking, you’ve completely out done yourself, Hannah!

I love lentils so much, they are always my go to ingredient for those busy evenings when I want something quick and tasty. This recipe looks simple and perfect, I really like the addition of broccoli, I don’t think I’ve ever paired that with lentils before. Fabulous idea1

I could eat stuff like this every day. There are some very unique things about your version, namely the split peas and rice cooking side by side, and the addition of tomato sauce and vinegar — way to kick it up a notch in the flavor!

That looks exactly like what I could use right now after a day of stepping through masses of snow, fighting for some space in the crowded library, and fighting my way back home through the snow again. Keep warm, Hannah!

This looks just delicious as do all of your recipes. I have a daughter who is vegetarian and because of her I’m slowly leaning that way, myself. I’ve made more meatless meals in the past six months than ever and I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s only a matter of time…I can see the writing on the wall…etc., etc. :-)

The steam does look wonderful indeed! Hmm, gotta remember that! That is one of my worst fears that our heating would stop at this moment in time, as we have pretty cold weather here at the moment too! Hope everything works again!

I made this over the weekend and while it was deeelish I had a tough time getting my lentils to cook all the way through. I took it off the stove after an hour and 40 minutes and they were still a bit too toothsome. Any thoughts as to why that may have happened?

That looks amazing! For some reason, the one and only time I tried to make golden lentils (in a soup) they wouldn’t get soft. This recipe kinda reminds me of my wife’s brown lentil/artichoke stew. Good warming, winter food